


back to the isle

by lotuschae



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: BAMF Evie (Disney), BAMF Mal (Disney), Canonical Child Abuse, Caring Uma (Disney), Everyone Is Gay, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Underage Prostitution, Isle of the Lost (Disney), Maybe Endgame Ben/Evie/Jay/Mal/Carlos de Vil, Minor Violence, Other, Poverty, Starvation, creepy behaviour, ish
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-29
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-02 05:34:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16780639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lotuschae/pseuds/lotuschae
Summary: Mal almost didn't believe her ears when Fairy Godmother made her announcement."Sorry, Fairy Godmother, but what the fuck are you thinking?"





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> been writing on this for a lil while and i wanted to post some of it  
> the plot is really stupid and doesnt matter but hey i wanted an excuse for some people to see the real conditions of the Isle (mainly FG)
> 
> enjoy
> 
> fair warning the beginning is rushed bc i want them on the isle
> 
> also idk why i got a small change of pov in the middle there,,,,, i wrote that a few months ago half asleep but hey it's the only change of pov in the whole story so  
> the rest of it is in mal's pov

Mal almost didn't believe her ears when Fairy Godmother made her announcement. Minutes before she had gathered the four villain kids and Ben in her office to speak. Mal was almost certain it had nothing to do with their behaviour, as they had been careful not to do anything to provoke the adults. Though, Ben _did_ look nervous and that made her feel nervous too.

Back to the announcement. FG wanted them to go to the Isle. Not for good, and not alone, she assured them right after speaking. It was only so that Ben and FG could see what the Isle was like. For educational purposes, Mal supposed.

Old instincts immediately returned to her mind and she saw that the other three tensed up. What was FG thinking?

"Sorry, Fairy Godmother, but what the fuck are you thinking?"

Jay was brave enough to speak, though Mal wished he had used kinder language. She forgave him when she saw the barely noticeable tremor in his hands.

"We will not be there long," FG said. "You will be accompanied and safe with me the whole time. We will only see the school there to get an idea of what previous education the children have had before bringing them over here. We can bring some over while we're there, as well."

Evie blinked slowly and Mal struggled not to smirk at the look on her face. She was on the verge of cursing FG out, and Mal knew that would take a turn for the worse.

"I suppose you want us to be guides? Lead you to Dragon Hall?" Mal asked.

"I want you four to help arrange the trip," FG said.

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Ben shot in. Mal met his eyes. Trusting and calm as ever. She then nodded at Evie, who took the lead.

"We will have to stay at the Loft. It'll fit us all and no one is dumb enough to try sneaking in. As for the school..." Evie looked at them for help.

"It's not like here," Mal added, always helpful. "Stick to us and you won't get stabbed."

FG did not look reassured.

**BEN POV**

They managed to sneak to the Loft without encountering anyone, but they were stopped by someone before they could open the front door.

"Harry," Mal greeted. The guy - possibly no older than seventeen - grinned crazily at Mal, looking like something out of one of the movies Chad liked to watch. Evie gave Ben and FG a look - _don't interfere._

"Mal! Pleased to see you love, and all these... people. I can't wait until Uma hears you're back."

"Still her lapdog?" Jay asked. His jaw was raised intimidatingly, though Ben had a feeling this Harry guy was way too crazy to think anything was intimidating.

"Still licking Mal's cunt I see," Harry retaliated. FG gasped softly at the use of such language, but Ben had no time to react as Harry's eyes brightened. "Puppy! Must say I've missed your warm mouth."

He winked and made kissing noises at Carlos. It made Ben feel gross just standing close to the crazed pirate. What was wrong with him?

"Fuck off, Harry. Stick a cactus up your ass if you're so desperate," Mal said.

Harry's attention turned to her. "Is that a promise, doll?"

"Suck a dick," Jay said.

Harry's eyes moved back to Carlos, an almost predatory look in his eyes. "Oh, I plan to." He offered them one more crazed look before he leaned towards Carlos, barely touching his lips with his own. He smirked, made something cold go down Ben's spine. Then he was gone.

Carlos flipped the bird after him. "Fucking creep."

"I forgot what Harry was like," Evie said. "Was he always this gross?"

"Well, yeah?" Carlos offered. "He's got to compensate for his tiny dick somehow."

It looked like the VK's forgot about Ben and FG until FG coughed. "What happened?" she asked.

Mal bit her lip. "Hook is telling the Isle we're here. I'll give it about six hours until our parents know."

"Evie and Jay's parents," Carlos added. "He's not about to spread it to my mom."

Ben felt like there was something more behind that, and he did not want to even guess. "Why not?"

Carlos shook his head. "Hook doesn't want damaged goods, but that doesn't matter. I'm glad he won't spread word to my mom."

FG smiled at him, tried to look reassuring. "Do not worry, Carlos. I will not let your parents harm you."

Jay barked out a laugh, though there was no humour in it. "You wouldn't stand a chance against any of them."

"But don't worry, Fairy Godmother," Evie said, smiling perfectly. "They won't find us unless we want them to. Now, we should go inside before it gets too dark."

Ben almost regretted asking. "Why?"

"Shipment day. You do not want to be a part of it."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> posted chapter 2 now bc why not lol  
> enjoy

Neither FG nor Ben looked too happy about having to sleep on the floor, but none of the VK's had any complaints. They all usually slept in the Loft when they were on the Isle, mostly to get away from their parents for a few hours. Hard floors were perfect when you were dead tired.

Mal had the first guard of the night when Ben came over to her, trying to be quiet as not to wake the others.

"Hey," he said.

Mal gave him a soft smile. "Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"Would you kill me if I said I can't sleep on the hard floor?"

"I could," she said, "but you can't die on the Isle."

Ben frowned. "What?"

"Nevermind," she said. She watched the rise and fall of Evie's chest as she slept, almost didn't notice the shift in her breaths that signalled she was awake and listening to their conversation. Mal's eyes were no longer hyper accustomed to the dark. That would take a few more hours to get back, at the very least.

"What's up?" she asked. Ben was obviously wondering about something. She saw it in the way his eyes shifted every few seconds, like he couldn't concentrate on anything.

"You don't have to answer," he said. Oh, what a great way to start a question. "But, I know your parents are all villains... I just thought-"

"No one on this Island loves their kids," Mal said. She could feel the air change as it became thicker. Carlos and Jay was also awake at this point, though pretending to be asleep just like Evie. Mal was glad they gave Ben the illusion of privacy for this. She wasn't so sure he would be able to ask this in front of everyone.

"All of them are too bitter and self-centered and evil. I know my mother has tried to kill me on more than one occasion. First time when I was a newborn."

Ben's hand went up to his eyes. Crying already? He wasn't going to like the rest of the conversation. "Kill you?"

Mal gave him a sad smile. "No one can die on the Isle, at least not permanently. People like to try, though. Don't tell me you didn't know this?"

"I knew my dad resurrecting the dead villains had consequences," he said, careful. The Auradon way - soft-spoken, like the person they talked to would shatter. Almost nothing Ben said could ever hurt Mal. "I didn't know death was impossible."

"Well, it is. Most parents take advantage of that. They know that no matter how much they hurt the kids they won't die. Useful for other times as well."

Mal could tell he did not want to know what those other times might be, so she said nothing more. It was best he did not know, anyway. He'd seen her scars before. A slash on her throat when she was four, a knife scar over her heart when she was nine. There were too many to count and too many to explain.

"So," he said. "Your parents in particular?"

Mal couldn't help but sigh. This was not the kind of conversation she really wanted to have when she could only offer half her concentration, but she supposed Ben needed this. Maybe knowing these things would make tomorrow easier. She wasn't sure about sharing anything about the others, but since they were listening they would jump in if they wanted her to stop talking. Not that she thought they would. All four of them trusted Ben like one of their own now.

"Maleficent was awful. She'd... well, let's just say murdering me as an infant was the least horrible punishment she cooked up for me. Evie's mom was awful in different ways. She's always been too self-centered. I think beauty is the only thing in her mind. Evie has always eaten less than us because of that monster, amongst other things. As for Jay, his father made him a thief. Jafar was more forgetful than a right-out asshole. He only killed Jay, what, two times? He shut him out of the house a lot though, went crazy in his search for a new lamp. And Carlos-"

She stopped when she heard movement from where Carlos slept. Ben barely noticed, probably thought Carlos was just a restless sleeper. To Mal the message was clear; _Stop talking._

"It was horrible on the best days. I'll spare you the gory details."

Ben nodded. He looked thoughtful, and though a little teary-eyed, he did not look like he was about to cry. "Thank you for telling me."

"No problem," Mal said. She gave him a more genuine smile and kissed his cheek. "Get some sleep. I'll join you as soon as Jay takes next guard."

Ben did as told and went back to sleep between Evie and Carlos, accepting that both of them immediately held around him. Mal was amazed at how Ben still believed them to be sleeping. Shaking her head she turned away from them to watch the door. She still had a few hours to go.


	3. Chapter 3

When they ventured outside the next day, both FG and Ben were nervous. They tried not to show it, but the prospect of how the school was terrified them. Mal got it. She saw nothing wrong with how the school was before she came to Auradon. Now she saw it for how fucked up it really was, though she still found it better to be at an underground school than at Auradon. Too much light messed with her concentration.

It was practically empty when they arrived, which was no wonder. Yesterday was shipment day, which explained all the screaming from earlier in the morning. Half the kids were probably laying somewhere waiting to come back to life, or they were hiding with their food.

"Where are the students?" FG asked, looked around herself in confusion.

Carlos shrugged as he pushed open the big doors. "Food run, probably. A new supply ship came in right about the time we woke up."

Ben frowned. "That was what the screaming was?"

"Obviously," Evie said. She looked wistfully, if not a little worriedly, towards the classrooms. "I wonder if Dizzy made it."

Mal grinned. "That kid is a fire cracker. She'll be up and running in no time."

FG looked worried, but Mal was thankful she had tact enough not to ask any stupid questions. Mal spotted Bianca, the daughter of Hades, down the hall. She and a few others were watching two kids fight for a piece of bread. Mal secretly hoped the younger of the two would win, but it seemed unlikely since the older one had a knife. She nodded at Jay and he went to join the fight. If anything went wrong while they were here they needed favours.

"B!" she yelled, first and foremost to get FG and Ben's attention away from what Jay was about to do.

Bianca turned to look at them, turning from angry to grinning in a second. "Jesus fucking Christ. You're back, Mal?"

"Weekend trip. How was the morning?"

"I got half a bread! Had to stab some stupid child in the eye to get it. Honestly I could have gotten more, but the fucker bit off my finger." She held up her hand, bandaged and bloody where the pinkie should have been.

Carlos laughed and the three VK's felt Ben and FG tense behind them. "You're losing your touch, Bianca. And against what, a seven-year-old?"

"I'll have you know she was nine at _least_."

Evie changed the subject before FG had time to express her shock. "So what's the newest?"

Bianca rolled her eyes. "Uma's got almost all your turf. Hook's been so far up her ass lately it's sickening."

"Didn't think he could be more of an asslicker," Carlos muttered.

"Asslicker?" Bianca asked, a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Last I heard you were the one sucking Hook. Tell me, has that changed?"

Carlos went red in the face, though from shame or anger, Mal could not tell.

"Where's Dr Facilier?" Mal asked, deriving attention away from Carlos.

"The office, probably," Bianca said.

Mal smiled at her with fake sweetness and was about to put a thank you in an insult, as was the Isle ways, but a scream cut her off. Jay had his foot on the older kid's face and had twisted the arm so it was now broken. The younger boy had the bread now.

"Now, fuck off," Jay said, putting extra pressure on his nose before letting go. The kid scrambled up and ran before Jay could do more harm. The younger kid nodded at Jay before he ran off.

"Oh my Goodness!" FG exclaimed, running towards Jay. "This is unacceptable! That child needs medical attention. Where are the teachers?"

Other students started laughing. "Who the fuck's this old hag?" Bianca asked.

"Mind your business," Evie said. "Scramble off, all of you."

"Come on," Mal said. "Time to see Dr Facilier."

-

Dr Facilier was in the office, as Bianca said. Everyone believed he practically lived there. She wondered how he got his food sometimes, but she figured it didn't matter anyway. No one could _die_ on the Isle, not even from old age and starvation. Being trapped on the Isle was cruel and Mal doubted King Adam ever knew no one could die there.

He was behind his desk, half-asleep. According to his daughter, Freddie, he used to be almost magical and manipulative, but the years on the Isle had broken him down along with the other adults. He was a shell of his former self.

"Ah, my least favourite students," he said as he raised his head. There was a glint in his eyes as he eyed FG, but it disappeared quickly. "Run off before I string you up from the ceiling."

Mal sat down in one of the two broken chairs in front of his desk, Evie smoothly following. They were posing now, careful not to show any hint of weakness in front of him. The children on the Isle might be cruel, but the ones that taught them were worse. The bitterness that consumed them made them more of a danger than anything Mal would ever face in her life.

"Oh, we both know we won't stay dead long," she said sweetly. "We're here for business."

He sighed, let his eyes slip shut. "What do you cretins want?"

FG stepped forwards now, though she stayed behind Mal and Evie. "Hi, I am the principal of Auradon Prep."

Dr Facilier expressed interest at that, straightening up in his chair. "Oh? What's an innocent little thing like you doing here?"

"She wants to see the education on the Isle," Mal explained.

"We're going to take more students to Auradon and need to see what kind of education they have had. Do you have their records, here?" FG asked.

Stupid question. Dr Facilier barely knew who was in his classes, least of all the whole school. He said as much to FG, much to her shock.

"I'll give you a few students," Dr Facilier said. "They're failing all their classes. That one Gaston kid, for example. Gavin? Geoff?"

"Gil?" Carlos asked. Dr Facilier nodded. They were all familiar with Gil. He hung with Uma's crew for the most part, but he sometimes ventured over to their turf to sell himself. The Gaston children were practically raised to be prostitutes and it helped business for Uma.

"If you could provide a list of your students-"

"Listen, fairy," Dr Facilier interrupted, giving FG a deadpanning look. "I barely know who goes to this school. Just take whoever you want, why do I care. Those little monsters aren't good for anything on this damned island."

Mal stood up. "Catch you later," Mal told Dr Facilier. They all filed out of the room and went back towards the Loft.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> takes place right after last chapter

They did not get far before they met a group of croonies. The Gaston twins, of course. Old rivals of Mal and old customers of Evie.

"Hey fuckdoll. Back for more?" Gaston Jr asked, licking his lips.

Evie looked him up and down, unimpressed. "In your dreams."

Mal put her arms in a cross to match Evie's indifference. Behind her Carlos and Jay stood protectively in front of FG and Ben. This could turn bloody, if they were not careful. None of the VK's were in the mood to display more of their Isle ways. FG and Ben had to be close to the brim of what they could handle at this point.

"Junior," Mal greeted. "Get out of my way."

Gaston Jr gave the others a _can you believe this bitch?_ look. "The nerve of you. Last I heard you fucked off to Auradon to become a princess."

"You think Auradon has made me soft? Oh, please," she said, allowed herself a cocky laugh to show who had control of the situation. For show she pulled out her knife. Gaston Jr had the audacity to laugh in her face.

"Oh, the princess has a little knife," he said mockingly. "Am I supposed to be scared? What are you gonna do, poke out my eye?"

He grabbed her arm harshly and punched her mouth. She heard FG and Ben react, but hoped Jay and Carlos held them back. Mal had to prove herself alone. Only then would they fuck off. Mal spit out blood, still holding onto the knife despite Gaston Jr trying to squeeze it out of her hand. Her eyes turned green with anger. Before Gaston Jr could react she took the knife into her left arm and sliced his cheek, making a perfect cut from the corner of his mouth. He would have to sew that. He let go of her hand to hold over the cut.

"Still think I've gone soft?" she asked, put on her best innocent pout. He glared at her, his confidence now replaced with anger.

"You fucking bitch," he spat.

Mal grinned evilly as he and his croons ran off. Ben pushed himself past Jay and grabbed Mal's arm. "Mal, what was that?"

She shrugged. "He was threatening my space. I had to retaliate."

"Was that why Jay broke the boy's arm?" FG asked. She sounded surprisingly innocent and naive.

Jay scoffed. "No. I fixed us a favour from the younger kid."

Ben shuffled a little on his feet, not looking any of them in the eye. He finally turned his uncertain gaze to Evie. "Why did he call you a... that word."

"Fuck doll?" Evie asked. Her face was hard as stone, but she had an inkling of goodness in her eyes, just enough for Ben to know she was not mad at the question. "We did some things to survive when we were on the island, me and Carlos especially. But, as you like to say, the past is the past."

Carlos looked away from Ben when he spoke. "I used to sleep with Harry for food and shelter."

Ben paled. "Sleep, like..."

"Sex," Carlos clarified. "Prostitution, more like. Some of us have to do it to survive."

FG coughed, and when they looked at her they saw she was red in the face, her eyes full of tears. "This... sexual favours are normal here?"

Jay looked sadly at her, as if suddenly remembering that FG was naive, despite her age. "Most of us don't have anything else to exchange."

"But you're children!" she exclaimed. "You were only... sixteen when you came to Auradon. I-"

"I was fourteen, actually," Carlos said, smiling sheepishly. He quickly backtracked. "Don't be alarmed! I only began when I was eleven or twelve."

Mal realised how fucked up it sounded, but to them it had been the norm for a good portion of their life. FG looked away from them, dried up her tears before straightening up her spine.

"We need to bring more children to Auradon, King Ben. ASAP."

Ben nodded, his gaze fixed on a couple of kids down the road. "We will."

-

Mal woke up well rested the next morning, as the boys had taken guard duty. Evie laid out a plan for the day, as she had been up late thinking about it.

"I think me and Jay should go around to check the younger kids, figure out where they are so it's easier to get to them later."  
FG nodded. "That sounds wonderful dear. Will you bring them here?"

Evie met Mal's eyes. Mal nodded at her. "Some of them," Evie said. "We don't have space to bring everyone back to the school and having all of them here will be risky."

"Good," Mal said. "The rest of us will talk to Uma."

Carlos made a noise of protest, but was quickly silenced by Mal's glare. "You _know_ it's our best bet to get more with us to Auradon. Besides, she'll believe us if Ben and Fairy Godmother is with us."

Mal and Carlos glared at each other, conversing only though their eyes. Evie rolled her eyes when they were done.

"Fine, I'll do it."

"Los, I'm not asking you to-"

"I _know_. But it will come to that anyway. You know them."

Evie gave him a look of pity. "I can go instead, Los. Really."

"It's okay Eves."

"What's going on?" Ben piped up.

"Nothing," Mal said. Obviously it was a lie. She smiled sweetly at him. "Should we get going?"

"We cannot leave Evie and Jay all alone. Me or Ben has to come with them," FG said.

Jay scoffed at her. "Listen, FG, I know we're only children in your eyes, but I lived here for sixteen years. I'm perfectly capable of getting around the Isle on my own and so is Evie."

She did not look too convinced, but she did not have any choice in the matter. The four of them had been on the Isle all their lives, both alone and together. One afternoon was nothing.

Proof that Jay had been affected by his time in Auradon pushed through when he finally caved in to FG's sad eyes. "Ok, alright. You can come with me and Evie. Ben goes with Carlos and Mal."

Mal nodded in approval. "Sounds like a plan."


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning for a bit of creepy behaviour

Uma's food court was almost empty when they came. Despite a new shipment of food that morning there had to be little to serve. The pirates were always the first to grab whatever trash Auradon gave them, and they used it to their advantage. People gave them almost anything for a loaf of mouldy bread. Uma was nowhere to be seen either and Mal guessed they would have to push Harry to give them her location. One quick glance at Carlos and she knew he thought the same.

"Welcome to the fanciest restaurant on the Isle," Mal introduced when she pushed open the door. Carlos snickered when Ben gasped.

"This is violating so many health codes," he said, eyes darting around the place.

Mal raised her eyebrows, unimpressed. "Out of everything you've learned today, this should not be your biggest concern," she deadpanned.

Ben looked ready to argue about this, but a cackling laugh interrupted him. By the counter stood Harry Hook and Gil, both of them watching the newcomers.

"Come for more, puppy?" he asked, easily jumping over the counter. Carlos immediately stalked off to meet Harry. Mal tried not to let it show on her face how worried she was about this. No weakness on the Isle. Weakness got you killed. Luckily Ben got this by now. It was one of the worst stone-cold faces she had ever seen, but he got an A for effort.

Carlos bared his neck to him, and Harry took the invitation. His mouth was on Carlos' neck before anyone could react. A quick glance at Ben revealed him to be shocked, maybe a little bit disgusted at the situation.

"Harry, we need to know where Uma is," Mal called, rolling her eyes to show she was tired at their antics, like this still was a normal occurrence. Harry took a break from assaulting Carlos' neck to look at her.

He offered a grin. "So you can steal back her territory, you mean," he said.

Mal rolled her eyes. "We only want to talk. We both know I wouldn't need to see her to steal back what's mine."

"What will that get me?" he asked after consideration. He looked Ben up and down. Ben took a step backwards, uncomfortable.

"You want to fuck a newbie or do you want something worth your while?" Carlos asked. He stepped so close to Harry that their noses touched, though Carlos had to stand on his toes for it. Harry looked breathless for a second, eyeing Carlos like he was his next meal. Mal thought it disgusting and not even close to what Carlos deserved, but she knew this was what he was good at. Manipulating Harry through the only thing he thought with - his dick. Mal wasn't as good at that as Evie and Carlos. Not that it would work for Harry anyway. He only ever had eyes for Carlos and Uma, maybe Gil if he was desperate.

"Okay. I'll tell you were Uma is, but I get you right after."

Carlos bit his lip and patted Harry's chest. "All yours. Now, bring us to your captain."

Harry gave him one more devilish smile and nodded at Gil, who now had moved in front of the counter. Gil sighed, as if he was disappointed with the results of their conversation, but helped lead the way.

-

Uma was in the captain's cabin of her ship, as to be expected. Mal would have gone there first thing, but she knew it was an insult to Uma if someone entered without being invited by her or Harry. Insulting someone in that way when you wanted their help was never a good idea, not even on the Isle. Mal had to act respectful in Uma's territory, without backing down from her own claims.

Honestly, Mal had felt it was impossible to dance around the unspoken rules of Auradon when she first arrived there, but being back at the Isle made Auradon look like a piece of cake. The politics of the place were impossible to manage.

"You have visitors, darling," Harry sang as they entered the cabin. Uma looked up from her desk and scowled when she saw Mal.

"So he wasn't lying," she said. Her eyes swept over the three of them, resting for only seconds longer at Ben. She put her feet up on the table, looked like she had no care in the world. "And you brought the King himself."

"We want to bring more kids to Auradon," Ben said, took her acknowledgement as an invitation. Mal tried not to wince. It was not easy navigating the horror that was the Isle, but even at Auradon you had to wait respectfully for the authority in the room to let you speak.

Uma gave him a look, uninterested. "Uh-huh. Why should I believe you?"

The question revealed her interest in what he had to say, even if Ben could not see it. Mal noticed Harry's hands on Carlos in the corner of her eye. He had no qualms of starting right here with them in the room, but Mal knew Carlos did not want her or Ben to see it.

"Make your dog take his hands off Carlos and we'll talk," she offered.

Uma was obviously annoyed, but she waved her hand and Harry let Carlos go. Carlos shot Mal a thankful look.

Uma had no more patience. "Talk."

Ben looked uncertain for a second, but he knew he would have to sell it. Mal told him on their way here that he could not show weakness, had to be confident in his own words.

"We want to take as many kids as we can off the Isle. My father was... cruel. He cursed all of you to be on this island without any resources to help you build a community. I want to bring you to Auradon so that more kids will get the chance to not only choose good, but to eat properly, not get sick, get an education and-"

"Die?" Uma asked, her eyes crinkled. "I heard we can die in Auradon."

Ben looked uncertain if it was a good idea to answer that question, but Mal where she came from. She had wondered that too, when she first came there. After being "dead" so many times she wondered if she would finally be able to permanently lay six feet under.

"...yes," he eventually answered.

Uma looked at Mal now. "What do you think, princess?"

"You want my opinion?"

"I know you won't lie."

Mal sighed. "He's telling the truth. Auradon is strange in the beginning. It takes a while to get used to," she started, "but it's better than being here. We can eat when we want, have our own spaces where no one invades our privacy. Clean water, medicine... the list goes on. Of course, classes in school are less than ideal, all about goodness and being a hero, but it's worth it."

Uma looked sceptical so Mal tried a different angle to sway her. "Think of your people. They deserve not to go hungry. The little ones deserve a warm bed and medicine. Most importantly, they don't deserve to experience death."

Uma drummed her fingers on her desk, lips pursed in thought. "Truth?"

"I swear it on evil," she said.

Uma clapped her hands together and took her feet off the table. "Alright. What do I do?"

Ben raised his eyebrows. "That easy?"

"Do you want me to change my opinion?" Uma challenged, eyes squinted dangerously.

"No," he said. "I just... I thought since you're a villain..."

"Ben, shut up," Mal said. "Don't listen to him. He's a bit prejudiced."

Uma scoffed. "You don't say."

"We need you to gather up as many kids as you can without making it suspicious. If any of the parents catch wind of what we do..."

Uma nodded. "No, yeah. I get it. Time and place?"

"The old garage by the pier. A bus is set to pick us up in the morning."

Mal saw Harry start up with Carlos again, but this time she let it happen. They were almost finished anyway and the quicker Carlos was finished, the better. Ben, however, seemed to not care about finishing up quickly.

"You don't need more time? To gather kids?" he asked.

Uma raised his eyebrows, surprised at his nerve to question her abilities. "It's a small island and I just so happen to be the one on top. I need only five hours, tops. Less if Harry and Carlos finish up quickly."

Ben's eyes widened in sudden realization.

"A deal's a deal," Mal said before he could protest anything. "We'll leave now. If Carlos isn't safely at the Loft in an hour-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Uma dismissed. "You'll shove a hook down my throat. Get out."

Mal turns to look at Carlos, quickly surveying his body for signs of distress. He knew she could pull him out of the situation easily, offer herself up or drag the moment out until they were at a safe distance from Harry. Carlos gave no such signs, however. He played his role perfectly, and parts of Mal wondered if he'd been missing this. Of course, the four VK's slept together occasionally, though Mal did it less now that she had Ben (they'd been thinking about inviting Ben into their strange relationship, but that would have to wait). Harry may have been fucked in the head, but he was gentle with Carlos. As Carlos had said earlier that day, he did not want damaged goods.

So, with only a tiny bit of guilt on her mind, she dragged Ben out of there and back towards the Loft.


End file.
